Eve D’Arcy (Gordano) reports on ‘Congo’s Curse’

The most recent GA session (11th November 2015) ‘Congo’s Curse: Unearthing the link between Natural Resources and Violent Conflict‘ was both informative and thought-provoking, leaving the audience enlightened about the motivations of armed groups, the causes of the resource conflict and the response of the international community. The lecture by Dr Ann Laudati from the School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol, provided an insightful and personal perspective on the issues surrounding instability in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as she was able to draw on her own experiences of working in the country. This, along with interaction with the audience throughout, encouraged us to think more critically and perhaps sympathetically about the true situation facing the population – fighting for political representation and economic security.

Personally, I feel most passionately about these aspects of human geography and plan to carry a degree in geography into a career working in International Development. For me, this lecture has therefore perfectly supplemented both my current further reading and plans for an Extended Project Qualification. It has also aided my understanding of the contexts in which geography can be applied.